The Woodshop Jockey

Addictions don't have to be a bad thing, right?

In the beginning...

There was a tree house. More of a platform that was surrounded by trees. I couldn't wait to get home from school each day and add pieces of lumber and random branches I had found around the neighborhood. Was it pretty? Absolutely not, but it was mine, and it sparked an obsession for building and woodworking whose flames are still raging like California.

In fact, it was in California that I finally had enough space/time/money to invest in my own woodshop. A 2-car garage (sorry, car, you've gotta sleep outside now...), a chop saw, a cordless drill, and a whole lot of building studs and plywood became the first "usable" woodshop. Pretty soon, my largest checks each month were written for my mortgage and Home Depot (One of those checks brought a smile to my face and was gladly written... The other was to pay for the 4 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms attached to my woodshop).

Just your typical, average carpenter.

Remy

And Veteran. And Corporate Learning & Knowledge Manager.

Yep, weekend warriors unite! By day, I work in IT developing methods and governance for the retention of learning and knowledge. But by nights and weekends, I am almost always found in my garage (or clawing desperately for inner serenity while "helping" an 11 yr old with math homework).

The Garage is smaller now, but...

One thing moving to Texas and renting an apartment with a single-car garage has taught me is how to minimize time on noisy machines and improve my use of hand tools. The space may be tiny, but it's still my sanctuary, and it's totally functional(ish). You don't need a lot of square-footage to build beautiful furniture and crafts, all you need is a little patience and a LOT of double-duty-dedicated space.